Aurora's ego swelled.  She was sooo gonna win this!  Smirking she put the cards down neatly in front of her.  "Aces and eights.  Deadman's hand.  Full house."  

"So, whatcha got, Sexy?  And no folding up shop and conceding defeat.  Everyone shows their goods at my table."  She winked at him.

Billy frowned.

"Pair of eights..."

He put his hand down and shrugged.

"I've never been any good at poker. Was interesting though. I really thought you had nothin."

He started to put the pack of cards away. Billy got far too close to Aurora then and reached one arm around her. He let his hand fall down to the small of her back then. This was a different kind of dance suddenly. He could feel her breathing, and she knew he could feel him close to her as the sun went down and the last little bit of light was fading from inside the garage.

"So what is is that I'm supposed to teach you? Now or later? Before or after I show off my goods?"

The color in Aurora's cheeks deepened as he touched her and made his suggestive remarks.  Her voice was quiet then, nervous if somewhat playful still, "You keep talking like that and maybe I'll need to reconsider what I ask you to teach me."

She looked down, sheepishly, "I ... um... actually was going to ask you to teach me how to play dice.  You see, my dad mentioned that you prefer dice to poker and... well, I've never played before.  Not even once."

Billy sighed. Apparently whatever charm he thought he had was not working. So he slowly let go of Aurora's waist and walked toward the garage door again.

"There's a couple of dice halls in the city. I'm sure we can find one and I can show you what I know. Half of it is luck though. The other half is knowing when the table is rigged."

He walked back to the car and opened the Driver's side door so she could hop in. This time he had no trouble keeping his eyes averted. She had made it abundantly clear that she was not really interested tonight. Nothing he could have done about it except be a gentleman now. Mentioning the old man he was sure was a little less than subtle, but planned exactly where she wanted it. She had really learned from her mom exactly when to use certain things to steer things in her direction. And now he wasn't even allowed to kiss her! What a mess.

As the engine roared to life Billy stepped to the side so Aurora could pull the car out and he could lock the garage up behind them. He saw Oscar's face light up when it pulled out of the garage. Billy held up two fingers to his bodyguard. He did tell Ricky he would pay double if he wanted to keep it after all.

He hopped into the passenger seat then.

"Alright, you're in charge for the rest of the night. Take us wherever you want to go kid."

Billy leaned back in the seat and put his feet up on the dash then.

Aurora slammed on the breaks, causing Billy to fold uncomfortably over his own lap.  She threw the car violently into park.  She was clearly upset.  She scowled as she turned towards.

"Alright!"  She said.  "We need to talk.  I don't know what boneheaded headed shit I just said back there to make you ... do ... THIS... was, but I'm sorry.  I've tried to tell you that I am an absolute wreck when it comes to talking to people..."

She held up her hand forestalling Billy's interruption and explanation that, again, she'd done nothing wrong - when CLEARLY she had!

"Just... give me a moment!  A minute ago you and I were having a moment and I wanted to tell you that I was interested in something that you love.  I thought that was a good thing and the next thing I know you're pulling away and we're racing off and you're... you're..."  She stammered.

"You called me Kid!  What the hell!?!  Look... I know I'm not good at this, like you, and there's a reason for that so let's just put our cards on the table.  I'm really, really into you.  A lot.  I am beside myself trying to find the right words and actions that will express how much I want to be with you... you know, WITH YOU, without looking like I'm some tramp that works in the red light district.  Cause, let's face it there's a line between classy, sassy and slut."

Aurora's words poured out of her rapid-fire without any real consideration.  It was as if someone had removed the filter from between her brain and mouth.  "But here's the thing, the best I got is cheap imitations of women who are far better at this than I am and imitations of women who are much more experienced than I am so ... I'm failing.  I never fail at the important stuff, but I'm failing at this ... just like I always do.  I'm not good with people.  Not like you and mom and Aunt Tara.  It's easier to shoot people than to talk to them and the fact of the matter is that I've never even been with a guy.  And I am fumbling like a moron trying to find my way here so... maybe I don't need you to teach me about dice so much as I need you to teach me how not to make a fool of myself and push you away."

She shook her head.

"There was only ever one guy before you."  She paused, finally realizing that she was saying much more than she probably should have.  "And he's dead because of me.  And we never... not even once.  So... if you want to call me, Kid... you're probably right.  I suppose I am a Kid... in some ways... but you should know, I won't always be.  And I'm trying.  And I'm sorry for fucking up this night just like every other time."

She sighed.  Breathless.  Upset.  Knowing she'd done it again.  Some people committed suicide with guns... she always did it with her words.

Billy looked over from the passenger seat and sighed. Once she had finished talking he readjusted himself in the seat and sat upright again.

"First off, I'm sorry for getting upset when I shouldn't have. I just figured that when we were that close, the last thing you would want to talk about was your dad. And then you mentioned him, so I figured you were trying to get me to back off."

He reached across the car and took her hands in his.

"I won't call you that again. I'm sorry. But I want you to know something. If that's the bar, then you can call me kid too. Don't get me wrong I'm not as nervous about it as you are or anything, but you're not the only one whose not done all that much with someone else. Supposed to be waiting till your married right? You can do plenty before marriage, thanks to you though, for the first time in my life, its real had to wait."

Billy could feel his face getting flush. He had never been so thankful for the sun to be all but gone before in his life. That would help hide his stupidity and embarrassment. A little bit of it at least.

"Ok, here's what I'm thinking. Let's not do anything either one of us doesn't want to do. I don't want to pull away from you anymore or think that you don't like me as much as I like you. In order to do that we REALLY have to find something to talk about other than your dad. Literally anything else. Talk about work if you want."

He smiled and then decided he was going for it.

"I know what I said, but damn the rules, I gotta make up for lost time."

He took Aurora by the waist again and then leaned over to her. He ran one hand up her back and kissed her firmly. He held her there, waiting. He waited for the tension to be gone, for her to finally just let herself melt into his arms before finally pulling slowly away.

"We are gonna do this at your pace, I'm not pushing for anything, but dammit Rora if you think you want to be with me then let's just say screw it and do whatever the hell we want to do. Nobody else has to get involved. So for tonight, we will go to a restaurant you pick. After that we can decide whats next. Your driving though cause I'm gonna steal every glance at your legs that I can while I think you're not looking. Would that be alright with you?"

Billy's confession and his kiss disarmed her almost completely.  She'd never considered a man of his age to be lacking in experience and certainly not if he was a Don.  She'd heard a rumor that a few goombas had considered dragging Will off as soon as he turned sixteen to a cat house, but her father had stepped in to make sure they knew that wasn't going to fly with him.  So how the hell had Billy missed out on his peers dragging him off to some lady of the night to be schooled in the romantic arts? 

Of course, she had no friends and quite frankly too much protection for that sort of thing to ever have occurred for her... as if there were 'men of the night' ... what a crazy notion!

As he finished his proposal she considered for a moment what he was saying exactly.  Had he just thrown out the idea that they ignore any good sense and just... do it?  Should she take him at his word and choose some restaurant in a far-flung location, exotic and romantic and steal him away for their first time?  

She found herself doubting, those whispers in her head telling her that she was jumping to conclusions and possibly misunderstanding grew loud and louder with each passing moment.  Luckily, this time, she was in the mood to be forthright.  She'd already told him the worst thing she could think of and he hadn't reacted badly.  Instead, he'd shared with her as well.  So... why not try once more?

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"  She chuckled a little nervously.  "Cause, if you are, I could make a phone call and a plane could be at the airport in a few hours.  We could get a nice snack now, take a flight somewhere warm and sunny, disappear for a day or two and come back with fewer insecurities as we try to figure things out together?  I mean... if that's what you're suggesting we do?  I ... I don't want to say that I'm opposed to the idea, though maybe it's faster than I would have done.  Still, the idea has merit.  We'd get the awkwardness out of the way and you'd be very clear on how I feel about you for sure."

She shook her head, "Of course, I want to be clear... I ... really am okay with just having dinner and then going back to my place for drinks.  I can't say how that would end, but I can promise that we'll have fun along the way if we can stop tripping each other up and just trust that we both like where this is going.  I promise to try not to talk about my family so much anymore.  I ... really should have thought about how that must make you feel.  It's just that ... well, they're sorta the most important people in my life and I don't have a lot of other stories to tell and I feel like I have to fill the silence or you'll think I'm not interested.  If that makes sense?"

She shrugged, "I don't want you to suddenly realize that exciting Aurora isn't quite as good of a companion as maybe another pretty girl.  Lord knows, as Don you must have a line around the block."  She chuckled nervously.  It was a joke, but not really.

Billy wrung his hands. As much as he wanted to reach out and run his fingers along her skin. Feeling the way her body reacted to his caress. It was one thing to hold her close and feel her melt into his arms. He was sure it would be something else entirely for anything she was suggesting.

"I wasn't thinking that to be honest. I would jump at the chance, don't get me wrong. I can't think of a single thing in the world that I would want to do other than that, now that I know it's a thing that you're not against. But, I was thinking just dinner, and I would teach you to dice, and then bring you home. You know, like a proper gentleman is supposed to. Like the kind of guy you deserve."

He put his hands firmly in his lap and took a deep breath.

"Rora. I'm real lucky to have met you and your whole family. I'm real luck to be where I am in life and in my position. But I know I'm not the guy anybody like you woulda picked. Your smart and pretty and you got a real education. Your family is rich and powerful. You are rich and powerful. You could have guy in the world, and you pick some dumb big enforcer. I just want to make sure you didn't make the wrong choice is all. Cause if you did, and we go off into the sunset and do... that? What happens in a week when you wake up and realize I'm below you here? When you realize that the only reason you're with me right now is cause I saved your life, and cause your mom and dad said I could be. You're gonna regret everything and I don't wanna be a mistake you made when you were young."

He couldn't help but look at her again, in the dress she wore, in her makeup. He kicked himself mentally for blowing it. This was his once in a lifetime chance to be with a girl who should have never given him the time of day. But he had to go and be the good guy.

"Let's just go have some dinned and some fun and I'll take you home after."

And for once, Billy Mastrosimone put on a smile that did not feel real.

Aurora rose up out of Billy's embrace as he put his hands into his lap, pulling into himself & away from her.  She watched him as he explained how he would protect her from her own 'stupid mistakes.'  She smiled.  It was him being a sweet idiot again.  She watched him put on a smile he couldn't possibly feel.  She reached over to touch his cheek with her hand, looking at him as if he were the sweetest guy in all the world, urging him to look at her.  Only speaking to him once he did.

"The flowers you brought me tonight were lovely.  Have you ever given much thought to why it is that men bring women flowers?"  She arched an eyebrow, brushing her thumb across his jawline.  She let her hand fall away and took up his hand in hers.  She looked down and watched her fingers caressing it.  Sliding across his and lacing into & out of his fingers.  It was an absent-minded, slow sort of mimicry, of what she supposed must be similar to two bodies making love.  Tender and loving touches, blurring all together with emotional squeezes to create emphasis.  A way to absorb him without letting it go beyond what he was comfortable with.

"They're bright and colorful, sure."  She continued explaining,  "They're taken at the height of their beauty from their roots and their beds, and given into a strange new place where they will wither and slowly die.  It's a pretty dark thing that men give women something they had to kill as an expression of their feelings.  Don't you think?"

She tilted her head to the side.

"When I was a little girl, I hated the idea of it.  I thought I would tell anyone who I really cared for 'never bring me flowers.'  I thought, 'why should pretty flowers die for me?'"

She picked up his hand and brought it to her lips.  She let them brush across his skin.

"And then I realized," She kissed his hand again.  "That the secret truth of flowers is that they are precious because they are dying.  Flowers are a metaphor for life and love.  The flower is the way we all come together.  Every relationship, family - friends - lovers, have this moment where it's perfect.  That, instant, that you want to remember forever.  You want to take it up and protect it, to enjoy it just as it is in that moment forever."

She let their hands go down to the seat.

"But everything changes in time, Billy.  Everything dies.  You got two choices in this life:  you leave the flower in all its beauty and walk on, happy to know that you had a chance to see the flower at all, even if you never see it again.  Or you take home and you love it fiercely frozen in it's perfection for whatever time you might have together.  It could be a day.  Maybe a week.  Hell, maybe you press it and keep the thing as a shadow of its old self just because you love it so."

She shook her head.

"But you don't cry when it's over.  No one cries for dead flowers which you always knew would die.  Instead, you smile because you had them at their most beautiful.  The memory of them can never be taken from you.  And if the flowers were given to you by someone else... well, you smile because they cared enough to give them to you in the first place; having seen them at their most beautiful they chose not to keep them for themselves."

She looked back down to their hands, now still on the seat between them, no longer writhing as they were a moment ago.  Resting in their post-coitus state, enjoying the nearness to one another.  "You smile instead of cry because at one, bright, colorful, perfect moment in your life... you had flowers and the world was, for a time, just a little less ugly."

She looked up from their hands and met his eyes.

"Never lie to me.  Omit if you must... I understand there are things you can't tell me about the life.  About your work, but don't ever lie... especially about what you feel.  Life is too short for that, Billy.  If you desire me, resist only because you want to prolong the sweetness of longing... don't push me away because you're afraid of what might happen.  Don't try to protect me from love and joy.  Speaking from experience, it's a terrible way to live and I won't make that mistake twice."

She looked away from his eyes again, for a moment there was a sadness there and then, a smile grew, "Of course I'm nervous.  I mean... who does things like this?  We barely know each other.  It's certainly not the good Catholic thing to do."

She chuckled, she was definitely NOT a good Catholic and he knew that.

"There's a dozen reasons why I shouldn't have suggested it.  A dozen more reasons to be afraid ... but none of them relate to my feelings about you.  Even if you were the sort of fella who, once you got what you wanted, moved on from me to the next dame - what would there be to regret?  That you made me happy?  That I made you happy?  Especially with what you confessed earlier about sharing my newness to this?  Can you imagine a world where even if we didn't remain lovers... that we wouldn't be friends?  I can't."

She looked up to his eyes again, "There are women with far worse stories about their first than this... and maybe, with all the reservations we have... it shouldn't happen tonight.  But - I think maybe I'd like for it to be you.  Maybe we could even plan for it.  Like picking flowers.  Choosing the most perfect scenario, something neither of us would ever lament years from now even if you and I end horribly."

She forced a smile. 

"I don't think we will end horribly... even if we did eventually end.  I don't have it in me to regret you.  My life is full of endings.  A lot of them have headstones.  At some point, you learn to see the beauty in it all... the losses and the death.  You hold onto the beauty in life for however long you got, or you just go mad."

She leaned over and kissed his lips gently leaning her forehead against his, her eyes closed as she said, "The only thing I think I will ever see, when I look back on Billy Mastersimone, is one of the most lovely moments of my life.  And tonight, for how stupid I felt dumping all of this on you... I feel that more than ever now.  So... maybe you should tell me what you're hungry for and I'll force myself to drive us into the city.  We'll have dinner as we planned.  You can drink in the sight of me all evening... and when you take me back to my place, you can kiss me goodnight knowing the flowers still have time to be this beautiful.  You can go home and make plans for our special night, sometime in the future.  Something worthy of a Don and his chosen mafia princess' first time."

She chuckled.

"How do you feel about that?  Is that what you want?"

Billy sighed.

"What I want, is to kiss you and never let go. What I want, is to take you somewhere and know that you are going to enjoy every minute of it. You're right, wherever we go, whatever we do, I'm going to just be staring at you. You're real pretty Rora, way too pretty for me not to look at. I've looked at your legs probably five or six times tonight already. And it doesn't help my brain that I already know you know exactly how to move your body."

He shrugged.

"But, I'm a big guy, and I'm really hungry, and I'm not as stupid as I look. A princess deserves way more than a spur of the moment fling. I think I just forgot that you were a princess for a bit, and only thought of you as my Aurora."

He sat back in his seat then and put his feet back up on the dashboard.

"I'll make it worth it for you, don't worry. It'll be a time to remember, but for now, for right now, we are gonna go eat, and have a few drinks. We are gonna go back to your place, and I'm going to try to weasel my way inside so I can do more than just look at your legs. We are both gonna get too comfortable and one of us is gonna make the decision that now is not the right moment, and then I'm gonna go home, or sleep on your couch if you have one that can hold me. I just realized I did not book a hotel. I'm sure Charlie and Oscar did, but I didn't even think to. Didn't plan that far ahead."

He grunted at his own stupidity then, but brushed it off in his own mind. It's just who he was really.

"I very often don't plan that far ahead. You're going to be the smart one in this relationship, for however long this flower manages to bloom. I'll be the big one that takes the hits."

He smiled, this time a genuine smile and then gestured toward the open road before them.

"So, you want to get Italian food and make your mother cry, or are we doing something more exotic?"

Aurora began to drive feeling his eyes on her the whole time.  Occasionally she stole a glance at him and smiled every time she found him looking at her rather than the world passing by them outside.  

"I think you can stay with me tonight unless you'd feel more comfortable not having to spend the night resisting the urge to cross lines we draw in the sand." 

She smirks. 

"Don't worry about not getting a room... I have access to one.  My parents have a place here in the city.  A few actually, but there's one I have a key to for unexpected situations.  I think you qualify.  It's in in the heart of the city.  A real gem of a place.  The sort of digs a Don should be sleeping in ... unlike my crappy apartment."

She chuckled.

"How do you feel about French cuisine?  There's a very nice french place that I know I could get us a quiet seat in.  The maitre'd is a guy I did a favor for... not tied to my parents or Race Streets, so no worries there... he's just a fellow who owes me a favor from when I first came to the city.  I bet he'd be willing to settle up with me by making sure we got some good food and some privacy in the restaurant."

Billy shook his head.

"Never had French food, unless you count French dressing on salad. As far as the apartment, I don't really care where I sleep. I don't sleep very long. I uh... I don't like being alone, and so I try to get up real early and go right to the warehouse. Only time I stayed in bed for a long time was the day Kenzi died when Integra and I slept together."

He went quiet for a second remembering that day. It was actually really nice to have somebody close like that. He smiled then thinking about how he might be able to sleep for a long time and wake up when he wanted to if Aurora let him stay with her.

"You know, I would really like to stay with you, even if I sleep on the floor. I think it would be really nice."

He shut his mouth and bit his tongue then before he said something stupid or self deprecating.

"So what is French food like? What makes it different?"

He was genuinely curious. he had heard stories about frogs being a thing that french people eat. He sighed and looked out over the open road then, there were very few lights where they were right now, just quiet and dark. It was kind of soothing. Not quite as soothing as sitting on a patio, smoking a cigar and just listening to the sounds around Hollowood. But the dull hum of the engine had it's own merits.

“You know, you’re killing me here.”   She laughed.  “For half a heartbeat I was sure you just confessed that you had sex with your right-hand.  Then I realized you must of been talking about actually sleeping in the same location with her, which makes a bit more sense, if it still is a bit confusing.  I mean you guys aren’t actually involved in any way are you?  Are you dating her? It’s OK if you are. I just want to know if there are other girls you’re seeing other than me. There’s not, right?  I didn’t misunderstand that did I?”

Billy coughed. He had swallowed his spit when she suggested Integra and he...

"No." cough "nobody else."

He finished his coughing spasm and took a deep breath of the night air.

"That's not at all what I meant. We really both just needed to feel like somebody else knew what we were going through. We slept in my bed, and then I got up and made breakfast for the both of us. Oh, you should know, breakfast is my favorite. Anyway, no I'm not seeing anyone else. Integra is like a sister to me, a big sister most of the time to be honest. Actually no. More like a twin. We are equals her and I. Sometimes she's right. Sometimes I'm right. But one thing is always certain. Everyone else is dead wrong."

Billy smiled a wide smile thinking about his sister then. They could go back and forth, but once they agreed on something he wasn't sure there was anyone in the world who could stop them.

"I have nobody even remotely close to dating me besides you Rora. You should know that. I also already told you, I've got a jealous streak. I won't even begin to try to tell you what to do, but you should know that as long as we are dating, any man that you let near you is taking his life into his own hands."

Billy put on as serious a face as he had in him. There was no joke about that. Billy did not care for competition, he simply eliminated it.

"There's no one else."  She said looking out at the road.  "I don't have any friends here in New York.  Now I don't even have my work.  The only men I see are in classes and, of course, my bodyguards."

She sighed.

"I can't tell you how happy I was that you actually showed up when I sent that guy to you with the message on his head.  I was worried like most of my attempts to get guys to notice me it would fail miserably.  Either I'd scare them off, and I didn't think that would happen with you, or they might see me as a path to power and influence and again... you have both already.  So... I figured it was a safe bet that you'd either come see me and we'd have fun with no feelings of obligation or debt - or you'd turn me down flat and that would be that."

"Generally speaking guys seek me out.  The only good guy I ever dated got a bullet because of me.  Everyone else has turned out to be a real creep.  And believe me, I won't cry any tears for you burying Mancini in a shallow grave.  Hearing he's with Durden now, telling him God knows what,"  She shook her head.

"I can't believe I ever saw anything in him at all." 

She shook her head.

"How about you?  Got any crazy ex-girlfriends I need to be worried about?"

Billy winced at the mention of a bullet for Aurora. He laughed a little after she said it though.

"Maybe the trick is to take two, not one."

He then shook his head and waved his hand.

"No, I never had the chance to really get into any sort of real lasting relationship, unless you count kid stuff. I don't count kid stuff. Ever since I started this life, there was one girl I liked, and she died. And then I fucked up some bastards who were responsible, and it still wasn't enough."

Billy had never said that to anyone before. He wasn't entirely sure why he was saying it to Aurora now. Maybe it was something in the mood they had created together tonight. It wasn't really a date per say yet, but at the same time it was more open, and honest, and real than they had ever been. More than he had been with anyone save Integra.

"So since we're playing this weird truth telling game with one another. I want to ask you a serious question. A real deep one."

He paused and waited for some kind of indication to keep going. And when she raised her eyebrow in anticipation, he knew he could ask. He had interested her in what was coming next, either that or pissed her off by not just asking the damned question and instead leading up to it.

"What's your vice? Some people it's smoking. Some people it's gambling. Some people it's drinking. What is it that you can't get enough of and know that if you didn't force yourself to stop it would be a big problem? We know it's not sex, so check that off. We know it's not dice, that's my thing. But I don't think I've ever seen you get so excited about something that you couldn't help yourself. So I want to know."

He really was curious as to hat it was she clung to in life on the hard days to keep her sane.

"My vice?"  She thought about that for a bit.  "Hmmm.  I'm not sure I have one.  I mean, I do drink.  I have even tried a few different drugs and I've smoked before... though I'm not really fond of any of that stuff.  I once lost a bet and had a romantic evening with a pretty redhead in the Florida Keys.  That was... nice.  Maybe a vice but not one I feel a particular need to repeat.  A passing fancy.  Most of the things I love in this life aren't 'bad' for me.  I've tried very hard to take care of my mind and my body."

She ignored any physical reaction he had to her comment that she'd been with a woman and kept rolling as if the statement weren't all that particularly interesting.

"Vices have to be bad for you, right?  So, I can't say dancing, though that is one of my great passions.  I do read a lot.  I enjoy learning about different places and people too - I speak four languages actually.  Again all of these things are really NOT vices, but they bring me joy."

Billy gawked at the woman driving his car. She had what? it took Billy a minute to come to terms with what she said and also how that played into what she had said earlier about her situation and how it was similar to his. He did not succeed in having it make sense. So he took his feet off the dash and sat upright for a minute hoping that it might somehow help him think if he were more focused.

"Alright, back up a second. Earlier you told me that you were, let's say, inexperienced. Now you're telling me about a redhead. These two things seem to be the opposite of one another, unless you're just considering a man and a woman sort of thing and what you did do was just for fun I guess? Ya know what, don't explain it. I have a feeling it's just going to create more questions."

He looked back down at her legs then, and thought about a few things. Including, most important to Billy in that very moment, all the possible things that could be done without taking anyone's clothes off. They could do all of that stuff and not have to worry about that night being the special huge impactful even they talked about earlier. Right?

Billy didn't have an answer to that question. All Billy knew in that moment was that his pants suddenly felt far too tight. Time to change the subject.

"So no real vices then. On the bright side you really enjoy yourself, and dancing you're very good at. And four languages is a lot. I can barely speak this one, and really am not as good at it as some people are."

In the distance he could finally see a silhouette of lights from houses and buildings that were growing taller as they sped closer. His stomach protested about it having taken so long to this point, and he was glad to know that it would be silenced soon.

Aurora laughed.  She couldn't help herself.  Billy's reaction was precisely what she expected it might be and she delighted in it.  It was a small social victory and she very rarely had them.

He tried to change the subject, but Aurora wasn't ready to let her 'win' fade so fast.  She had to relish it a bit.  

"I'm very much a virgin, you know."  She said to him in her own defense, wondering if he even considered she might be joking.  "I suppose you could give your virtue to a woman with the right tools... but we didn't do anything like that.  It was a friendly bet, nothing so serious as all that."

She blushed even as she tried to poke at his sensibilities, speaking with a nearly clinical air about a private experience that she'd likely not told many people about before; oblivious to his clothing problems.  

"In all honesty, I was quite drunk, but it wasn't so different from spending time with myself.  Well, aside from her kisses and just having someone to hold me.  That part I did like, though it would have been nicer if she had been a guy.  She wasn't strong enough for my liking... she was all soft and ... I don't know, just not very much like a man.  I prefer to be held in the arms of someone stronger than me and I don't suppose there are a lot of women who can boast that - and those who could would scare me."  

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes.

"Oh come on.  You didn't expect a woman who was double tapping murderers and pedophiles with m1911s to not have SOME experience, did you?  I once heard a guy describing the road to making love as being like running the bases in baseball?  I suppose you could say I've made it to third base.  Or maybe somewhere between second and third?  I'm not really clear on which base is which."

Again she laughed, she was clearly having fun at his expense.

"Have you changed your mind about me yet?  Decided I'm too debauch for a good Catholic boy like you?  Are you going to rat me out to my parents?"

Billy nodded, dead serious as he could make himself.

"That's exactly what I'm gonna do. This whole thing was just a ploy to get you to confess your sins so your VERY Catholic mother could have a good reason to send you off to a nunnery. You've given up the ghost now and are doomed to a life of..."

He couldn't keep a straight face any longer and burst into laughter.

"Oh god, let me tell you I did not expect you to have anything like that in you past. I'm being completely honest. I just figured if you hadn't done anything, then you hadn't done anything. I never thought of it like a, well I guess, a normal situation? Yeah. It probably is pretty normal to gradually get to a place rather than just jump in head first. Never thought about it that way. It makes me less nervous about the whole thing though. At least you know some stuff. "

Billy looked out the window again. Now he really had to try and play his cards right tonight. There were far more options on the table than there had been before, and he certainly wanted a shot at one of em.

"So no soft touch then though? I mean, I try to be gentle when we are kissing and stuff, do you not like that? I know I'm a lot stronger than most people and I don't want to hurt you is all."